SBIR Phase I:Li-ion Cells From Recycled Battery Materials

This SBIR Phase I project will develop and demonstrate the feasibility of a direct recycling process suitable for recovering and regenerating active materials from Li-ion cell waste streams and reincorporating those materials into low cost high performance Li-ion battery products. The project includes establishing the feasibility of recovering contaminate free anode, cathode, and electrolyte materials. The recovery of those materials has the potential for cost reduction. The project includes characterization of the materials, as well as designing, building, and testing full cells incorporating the recycled materials. The broader/commercial impact of the project will be the direct use of recycled materials to build new cells. This has real potential for cost benefit. Success of the approach will greatly enhance the value proposition for recycling Li-ion cells, which should have a direct impact on the recycling rate. The low cost materials recovered and regenerated from recycled Li-ion cells have the potential to significantly reduce the cost of Li-ion systems overall, benefiting the consumer and enabling more rapid acceptance of environmentally friendly applications like EV?s. The Li-ion cells have applications (at this time) mainly in the automobile industry.